Secret of the Sea
by nat-chan
Summary: Prince Endymion recieves a most unusual gift.....the secret of the sea.....


Secret of the Sea  
  
Author: nat-chan  
E-mail: natia_99@yahoo.com  
Rated: PG13  
Disclaimer: *standard*  
Author's Notes: Here's my mermaid short since all the mermaid stories  
I've read have had sad endings!!!   
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
He sat at his throne, listless.....he'd been called to the main hall  
because some fisherman had returned and said they brought him a gift.   
A beautiful gift. The secret of the sea.  
  
He leaned on one hand with disinterest. None of this interested him. This structure  
of followers trying to gain favour with gifts. Of rulers over commoners. Of sitting  
in a throne all day.  
  
The fisherman entered then, in a barage of servants and guards and carried what   
looked like a body with them. As they approached he stood, a feeling of uneasiness  
creeping over him.   
  
He saw a long, long fish tail....a silvery colour....but then....he saw a girl. A   
beautiful, ethereal girl. Her long silvery hair dragged after her. Her ivory skin  
so pale...as though the sun had never touched it.   
  
"Sire," The two fisherman bowed, "We bring you a mermaid."  
  
They dropped her to the ground and his eyes widened in horror, staring at her limp  
form. He lept down to her, "Is she dead?!" He cried in terror.  
  
He cradled her human half in his arms, trying to take a pulse from her neck...it was  
then he made out her ragged breathing.  
  
He turned to look at the men, "She can't live without water.....can she?"  
  
They shook their heads in confusion, "Er, no sire...she is a fish afterall."  
  
"You would let her die?" He cried out.  
  
Their eyes narrowed shrewdly, "Sire, with all due respects. She is a fish. A prize.  
A treasure. That is all."  
  
They bowed and left. The Prince was utterly horrified. He scooped her up into his arms and   
looked wildly about. She stirred. Her eyes fluttered open and looked straight into his  
own...and the beauty he saw there made him fall in love. Silvery blue eyes.....  
  
She stiffened in terror, looking every which way and then back to him. She realized she  
couldn't move...he watched her realize and then she curled up and wept...silently in his  
arms.   
  
He reached up a finger to brush her cheek, "You're safe." She obviously didn't  
understand speech and merely flinched. Goodness, he thought, how does one communicate  
to another without words?  
  
He tilted her face to look at him and smiled. The universal symbol of good will. She   
watched him in confusion.  
  
Then he started walking, out the back of the castle, through crowds of guards that stared  
in shock and wonder. She gripped him tight and hid her face.  
  
But as the outside sea breeze hit her, she looked up quite suddenly...and spotted the shore.  
She looked at him with wide eyes and back to the sea. He watched her grow excited and  
hopeful.   
  
He smiled again, and this time, she smiled back.  
  
He waded in till the water was over his waist and gently lowered her into the sea. Her  
tail took over then and she seemed to suspend before him. She smiled broadly and seemed  
to reach, first to her throat, then her hair...searching for something?   
  
She frowned a moment, then pulled up a strand of that silvery hair. She dove under and then  
resurfaced with a lock of it, which she pressed into his hand. Then she impulsively threw  
her arms about him and kissed him gratefully.  
  
He held her a moment longer....savoring the feeling. When she pulled away it was to eye  
him strangely. She watched him before putting a hand to her chest,  
"S-sryna..." She struggled out...her voice echoey and silver...like music.  
  
He smiled, "Sryna?"  
  
She nodded.  
  
He pointed to himself, "Endymion."  
  
Her eyes widened and he chuckled. Far too long for her to pronounce.  
  
"En," He began and she copied, "dy."  
  
"dy"  
  
"my"  
  
"my"  
  
"ion"  
  
"ion"  
  
She frowned to herself a moment, then looked up, "E-Enmion?"  
  
He smiled and nodded and watched her face light up like a star.  
She moved to swim away then and his face clouded over with regret. Her eyes turned  
curious and she moved closer.  
  
He drew her back into his arms and held her a moment....she kept perfectly still, and  
then hugged him back. She drew back her face and smiled encouragingly at him, then  
disappeared into the water.  
  
He watched her go. He looked at the lock of silver hair. He would never see her again.  
His heart clenched. That promise of beauty in her eyes...beauty so much more than the life  
he lived.  
  
He walked slowly back to the castle.  
  
  
After that he was always at sea. Always sailing. Let his brothers marry and rule the   
Kingdom. He had no wish to return to land. He wished to be at sea forever.  
  
He'd searched out the Sailors that found her and asked them where. They'd given him  
the locations. Said she got tangled in their nets.  
  
He sailed for months to reach it. The warmer waters near the south. He wore the lock of  
silver hair in a pouch about his neck, and never took it off.   
  
And as he gazed down into the waters, he longed for her. Wished for her. Searched for her   
as though she might surface.   
  
It was foolish...after her last capture, she would probably never venture up again.  
  
He began to lose hope. What would he do now? The crew were ready to move on. They  
sailed that night and left the spot behind.  
  
And a storm struck. A fierce storm that raged and tossed the ship, ripping it to pieces.  
And horribly he was glad. Glad he need not try to go on. Glad he would drown in the sea  
near to where she had once been.  
  
As the ship splintered and creaked, and the crew struggled into lifeboats with futility,  
he merely stood by the side, waiting to fall in. And with a mighty tip of the bow, he was  
thrown, down down down into the dark waters. He sank blissfully, clutching the lock of  
silver hair.  
  
"Sryna..."  
  
  
And not so terribly faraway....she heard. Heard him call for her and tore off through  
the water. Following the sound with an echo location that put dolphins to shame. She  
spotted him sinking and her eyes widened in horror. She shot over to him and caught him  
gently, lips pressed to his, urging him to live.   
  
His eyes fluttered open and he stared at her in shock. Beautiful shock.  
  
She pulled him above the surface and he gasped for air. A blessed sound to her. The storm  
had begun to die down and she helped him ride out the waves until it had passed. It   
was morning before the sea was calm again.  
  
He was exhausted and held her loosely as she bore them above water. She smiled at his tired  
face and he saw how glad she was to return the favour...and realized as she headed towards land,  
that she was taking him back--and he did not wish to go.  
  
He fought against her movement and she halted, frowning at him in confusion. She tried  
again, gently, and he refused. She looked into his eyes and he clutched her tightly,  
"I don't want to go back...I want to say here with you." He begged.  
  
She didn't understand. She looked helplessly into his eyes, and then seemed to think of  
something.  
  
She looked at him and took a deep breath, then nodded for him to do the same. He did and  
she took them under, then looked deeply into his eyes....and spoke.  
  
How she spoke he could not say. Her lips never moved. And it was not language...it was more  
than that.   
  
It was soft and slow at first....a kind of "Can you hear me?" and when his eyes looked  
shocked she knew he could.  
  
She spoke gradually, and simply--as one might to a child...before making it more complicated  
as he understood. Then she was shaping out entire memories and references with each thought.  
  
It was like getting the statement and everything connected to and motivating it all at the same  
time. It was amazing.  
  
He saw how she didn't understand why he wouldn't go back to his people. He saw that she came  
from a Kingdom...that she was a Princess...the youngest....and he felt how she cared for him.  
  
Then they surfaced and she looked expectantly at him. He didn't know how to speak that way.  
He concentrated all his efforts and tried to push his thoughts to her, went underwater and  
tried, pulled her close and finally she heard him.  
  
Felt his thoughts shape his disinterest in returning to land. The dislike he held for his  
people's ways and the freedom he aimed for at sea. Then he spoke directly to her.  
  
~I want to stay with you.~  
  
Her eyes widened in surprise.  
  
~But...but you are human.~ She seemed to say. He chuckled.  
  
~But I long for you.~ He pulled her to him underwater. ~I looked in your eyes when  
we first met and saw so much beauty I fell in love.~  
  
He felt her jump in his arms, ~Love?~  
  
He nodded and kissed her as she pulled him up for air. She looked incredulously at him.  
Her eyes turned towards land, she watched him shake his head. Then she began pulling him  
the other way. She turned him onto his back and let him lay against her as she propelled  
them both.  
  
Hours seemed to pass as he lay content to be near her. Then they washed up on a beach.  
A small island. Deserted. Beautiful. She didn't know where else to go.  
  
He looked around in surprise. He touched his forehead to her own gratefully.  
~Thank you.~   
  
She jumped and then her face broke into a smile. She pushed their foreheads back together,  
~Can you hear me?~  
  
His face lit up to match hers and he nodded.   
  
With speaking above water out of the way, they simply stayed close and talked. Sharing  
memories and emotions. He gathered bits of her culture and heritage from her chatter,  
but mostly a deep sense of caring....something wonderful.  
  
As it grew dark she helped him find food, scowering the shore as he went inland to the trees.  
Then he lay down in the sand, near the waters edge and she lay near him, tail stil submerged,  
head in the crook of his arm and they slept peacefully.  
  
But when he woke, she was gone. He stretched stiffly and went to work building himself a small  
shelter--abandoning it when she appeared at the shore.   
  
He looked at her sorrowful face as they drew close and spoke. Trying to read what her  
sadness was in her mind didn't work....he only saw what she chose to reveal.  
  
They chattered on for sometime and then lapsed into a lazy silence...laying side by side,  
foreheads still touching.  
  
~Tell me about your Kingdom.~ He prompted.  
  
~What about it?~ He'd grown used to her thoughts enough to give them fairly accurate  
translations.  
  
~Well....uhhh....the people. What are the people like?~  
  
She smiled, ~They are wise and very old. The Kingdom is very peaceful compared  
to yours. We are guided and protected by the sea--we do not try and tame it the way you  
do the land. Everyone lives in peace...there is no battle and very little evil. But  
the traditions are very strict.~  
  
He nodded, ~It sounds wonderful though...peace without war.~  
  
She was silent a long moment.  
  
~You're a princess?~  
  
~Yes. That day you saved me, those fisherman stole my pearl crown...and my necklace.   
People of the Sea never wear clothes or things like that because they slow them down  
underwater...but everyone wears a necklace of trinkets they've collected....they're very  
meaningful. Without mine, I have felt very disheartened in making another one.~  
  
He looked at her sadly and tried to think of something to give her. He still had his  
gold rings and remarkably his crown....she's been sure to save it for him.   
  
He offered her a ring but she shook her head.  
  
~That's all you have left of your royalty.~  
  
He frowned, then reached down to his shirt and tore off a button. Her eyes widened.  
  
~How about this? Will this start you a new one?~  
  
She took it slowly and strung it round her neck. She smiled softly at him and  
then, the sadness returned.  
  
~What is it?~  
  
She shook her head, ~N-nothing....~  
  
He pulled her closer, trying to comfort away that emotion, but it only deepened.  
  
~What else do you want to know?~ She asked, trying to shape the look of the Kingdom  
to him...to portray the feel of swimming there.  
  
But he asked her nothing...suddenly pulling back and then leaning down to capture  
her lips...and she could feel his love....and he could feel her sorrow.  
  
~What is that sorrow Sryna?~ and suddenly he knew that wasn't her full name...just a  
mispronounciation. But she liked it....he could feel it....it was a nickname-or something  
akin to one.  
  
She hesitated, ~I am sad because....I love you too.~  
  
He stopped and gazed into her eyes, then smiled, ~Why should that make you sad?~  
  
~Because we can never truly be together....~ She began to weep then,  
~Everyone is wondering where I go....I fear they may follow me...and find you...~  
  
His heart clenched in fear. Fear that they might separate them. He gripped her  
tighter and then kissed her...kissed her until they both forgot about fear.  
  
And as the kiss turned passionate and his hands wandered through the tangles of her silver  
hair and over her back....he began to wonder...  
  
~Sryna?~ (AN: that's pronounced Sr-i-na)  
  
~Mmm?~ Her thoughts were muffled and dazed.  
  
~How do mermaids make love?~  
  
He felt her very soul blush then and her eyes shot open to gaze into his own. He smiled  
at her and chuckled softly.  
  
~Well...~ He sent her, as gently as he could, a vague sketch of how humans made love  
and she hid her face in embarassment, but then he felt a giggle in her thoughts...  
  
He laughed again and tilted her chin up, ~Well?~   
  
She tried to sketch it out...shyly. She had no experience so it was only based on what  
she'd heard. He tried to understand. It was different. Different than humans in more  
than one way.  
  
Mermaids physically made love by wrapping their tails together....it could be a tender  
embrace or an elaborate dance....and it was supposed to be very pleasurable. But the real  
beauty of it was that underwater...where minds spoke in such a deep language....souls  
touched when making love. Like a stroke of one mind against another, and that sensation  
was supposed to be euphoric.   
  
Mermaids only sought love once--only ever once, and they bonded for life. More than life--?  
Her thoughts cut off abruptly...she'd said too much.  
  
It took him a moment to catch on.   
  
They couldn't be together, and she would never be with anyone else....for she loved him,  
and him alone.  
  
He felt a selfish pleasure....and a terrible guilt.  
  
They held each other tight.  
  
~I wish I could come with you....and live in the sea....~ He said softly into her.  
She stiffened.  
  
He felt her battle herself briefly...it seemed the love between them opened up their  
thoughts even more.  
  
~There is a way....I think...~  
  
His eyes lit up with excitement.  
  
~Do you really wish to live under the sea? With me?~  
  
He nodded, his eyes so loud and vibrant she jumped at the volume of it inside her.  
She smiled, then grew serious, ~There is magic that can make humans mermaids...I believe  
Beryl, the sea sorceress possesses it...but she uses dark magic...the price may be very  
high.~  
  
~Anything.~ He said quickly, then he kissed her, thoroughly, and poured into her his  
desire to be with her always until she was certain.   
  
She swam away that night and he knew she was going straight to Beryl.  
  
The next afternoon...as the light began to fade, she returned, with another mermaid. She was  
bigger than Sryna...and made her look much younger....this woman seemed older. Much older.  
  
But her skin was ivory like Sryna's, and smooth. Her eyes were dark and her hair was the  
most rich shade of red he'd ever beheld. It was beautiful. She gazed half-curiously at  
him, half-amused.  
  
He came down and waded into the water to meet them.  
  
Beryl reached up and pulled off his crown, then each of his rings and put them in a satchel  
she carried.  
  
He looked from her to Sryna and they didn't need to speak. He understood. This was the  
price. A small price for such a gift!!  
  
He smiled happily, but the smile died as Beryl smiled. It was a smile of darkness. She  
opened her mouth then, and began to sing....he'd heard tale of mermaid singing.....a siren's  
call...irresistible. This was not so.   
  
Beryl sang beautifully, but the song filled him with terror. It was a dark song, an evil  
song, he could tell.  
  
The water became black between them, and Sryna's hands flew to her mouth.  
  
Then he felt the darkness bite into him, stabbing pain through his legs and his spine until  
he screamed out, the sound making Sryna cover her ears.  
  
Then he heard his own voice change and become a song of it's own. A mermaid song. A sound  
he now possessed.   
  
It was the last thing he remembered before he blacked out.  
  
When he woke it was morning, and the sound of the sea lapping at the shore seemed louder.  
He was cradled in Sryna's arms as she stroked his face. She was singing very softly. Her  
silvery voice drawing out his heart. He smiled up at her and tried to move, pain stabbed   
through him.  
  
~It hurts!~ He burst out and she actually cried out.  
  
~My love! You don't have to be so loud anymore!~  
  
Her voice was clearer and more pronounced inside him.  
  
~Sorry...~ he said softly, and heard her laugh inside.  
  
Their foreheads weren't touching. He smiled at her, then looked slowly down to his legs....  
and saw a tail. A long, silvery tail. His smiled widened.  
  
~My love!~ He cried excitedly and looked back to her face.  
  
She smiled carefully, ~Yes, it worked. But I must teach you to swim and eat...~  
  
She tugged off his shirt gently, smiling playfully at him.  
  
He let it drift away in the water and tried again to move. It hurt terribly, he winced.  
And he realized, it would always hurt...that Beryl had made it so with her dark magic.  
He decided not to tell Sryna.  
  
~Does it still hurt?~ She asked as he winced.  
  
~Not so much.~ He lied.  
  
She frowned but said nothing.  
  
He tried to move his tail and floundered about like a child must. It was very powerful.  
Several time he'd flip it lightly and shoot off in some direction at break neck speed.  
  
Finally though, after many hours, he managed to get the hang of it. Sryna enjoyed  
teaching him and playing with him underwater...she ushered him gradually out to the deeper  
water where the tides and currents worked in his favour. He followed and left land  
behind forever. He didn't look back.  
  
They swam and ate--though he grimaced a bit at first, and she laughed at him.   
  
Her hair looked so much different underwater...like a silver cloud...it swirled into  
various shapes and he realized that mermaids did this...as a matter of style. They knew  
how to move to shape their hair....it was a signature of their personality.   
  
He reached up to his own hair and found the scruffy beard he'd been growing gone. His face  
was smooth.  
  
~Mermen don't grow beards.~ She explained, ~Why would they need them?~  
  
He smiled. He swam up and caught her into his arms then, ~I love you.~  
He kissed her deeply and felt her slip into his embrace. It felt different. Everything  
felt different. The sea was alive now. The tides and currents moving him, guiding him.  
The sounds of the ocean creating shapes of things that were out of sight so that he could  
see without his eyes.  
  
And in his arms he could feel the love of his Sryna.....  
  
~Serenity...~ He spoke it properly.  
  
~Endymion...~ She spoke it clearly...but it sounded different....it was shaped by  
how she felt for him. By her love. He read her love to the depths of her....felt her  
purity, her kindness, her geniuine essence of good. It was all beautiful.  
  
But he read sorrow again. She seemed to be keeping something from him.  
  
He kissed her again and tried to read it, but instead the kiss turned passionate....and  
he felt his instincts taking control of him....he pulled her closer and gently pressed  
their bodies together....she jumped at the contact and pulled back.  
  
~Oh no! Oh no, not yet!~ She cried, flustered and embarrassed.  
  
He chuckled at her and she frowned.  
  
Then she swam around collecting shells and pretty sea things and strung them all together.  
Then shyly put the necklace around his neck.  
  
~In my Kingdom...it is women that choose who they bond with.~ She said carefully, afraid  
of how he would react, ~When we arrive, it must be clear that I have chosen you.~  
  
He shook his head, ~Alright.~  
  
She smiled in relief and he wondered if that worry had been enough for her sorrow earlier.  
  
~We're almost there.~ She whispered into his mind.  
  
She showed him how to move a bit more....so he wouldn't look so awkward. He hid the pain  
well...it burned terribly with every stroke, but he ignored it. He was with Sryna...that  
was all that mattered.  
  
And then they arrived. The Kingdom made him stop and gape. It was enormous.....lit  
by magic....it looked like nothing he'd ever seen before.  
  
Everything was round and smooth, full of hollows and caverns...and the palace was easily  
distinguishable. Everything felt so ancient....and longstanding.  
  
~Beautiful isn't it?~ She said proudly.  
  
She took his hand and pulled him forward. He swam in, taking in all the wonders around him.  
The marketplace...the buildings...the magic lights....and the people.   
  
Merpeople...hundreds of them.....children...couples....men and women....and something else.  
A merwoman went by with what looked like wings??? He pulled Sryna to a stop and tried  
to point at the woman but she urged him forward and refused to listen.  
  
There was an anxiety in her. He could not place what it was. Something...  
  
He let it go and followed her. Several girls approached them then, looking excited.  
  
~Serenity!~  
  
~Where have you been?~  
  
~Who is this man?~ That last one came from an impestuous looking blonde who winked at   
Sryna winningly.  
  
He felt Sryna's embarassment.  
~This is my chosen...~ She said softly and they all squealed in delight.  
  
They turned to greet him.  
  
~I'm Endymion.~ He offered with a smile and they all stared in surprise.  
  
Sryna quickly shot over thoughts of how men, when being presented, must speak after they  
are spoken too and he started in surprise.   
  
Her friends seemed to catch this exchange and looked back to her curiously.  
  
~Where is this man from Serenity?~ The black haired girl asked her.  
  
~I apologize...~ He offered hastily and looked down.  
  
But the girls immediately softened and he felt encouragement and comfort beam genuinely  
from them.  
  
~No need. Do not worry about formalities anyway. We are friends to Serenity, and therefore  
friends to you as well.~  
  
He learned their names and found the blonde Mina to be Serenity's sister.  
  
They continued on to the palace and he felt Sryna tense more and more. Evidentally the  
reaction of the Queen was imperative. He swallowed hard. He still knew very little about  
the customs of these people. He didn't want to offend Sryna's mother!  
  
But the tall, stately woman seated at her sea throne, with long silver hair, had kind eyes  
and a warm smile.  
  
~Serena-daughter~ She seemed to form it all as one word...a beloved term of endearment.  
She spotted him and raised her eyebrows.  
  
~And who is this?~ Came her amused voice, ~Is he your chosen?~  
  
And then he felt a wave of emotions...motherly care and sentiments of how she was  
the youngest...the last to find love....now all her babies were grown.  
  
But as she ushered him forward her eyes widened in something akin to horror.  
  
~Human...~ She uttered and his eyes widened as Sryna gasped.  
  
She turned to Sryna, ~Darling...what have you done?~  
  
She ushered him forward curiously, gazing into his eyes, searching.  
  
He let her read him then....through to his depths. And the fact that he did so freely  
impressed her greatly.  
  
She read the goodness in him...his love for 'Sryna' she chuckled at the nickname....and  
then she read his body to see how a tail was even possible.  
  
~Beryl~ She hissed...recognizing the magic.   
  
Sryna's eyes had filled with tears, and she shook with fear.  
  
~Mother...please...I love him!~  
  
He looked into the Queen's eyes then. She smiled kindly.  
~You are in pain.~ She ebbed away the barriers he kept over his pain to guard it from  
Sryna so effortlessly and he heard his love cry out in shock.  
  
~You lied! You're in terrible pain! Oh Mother!~  
  
The Queen kept gazing into his eyes, ~Beryl cast a cruel spell....~ She touched her forehead  
to his gently and a silver glow encased them. When she pulled away the pain was gone  
completely.  
  
~Now you truly know how it feels to be a merman.~ The Queen smiled down at him. He bowed  
then and felt her chuckle.  
  
~I am Endymion.~ He offered.  
  
~I am Queen Selenity.~ She bowed slightly in return, then her eyes softened incredulously,  
~You gave up your legs, your voice and your life to follow my daughter?~  
  
He sent over waves of thought about his previous life....and then nodded.   
  
~You were a Prince?~ She asked as she read into his past.  
  
He nodded, ~Yes. I admire greatly, the peace of your Kingdom.~  
  
She smiled, ~As do I.~  
  
Sryna approached them cautiously, then hugged her mother in gratitude for curing his  
pain.   
  
The Queen brough their hands together, ~Now you are bound for all eternity, you have  
my blessing. Enjoy forever together.~ She spoke the traditional words.  
  
He frowned curiously. Sryna's eyes widened and a quick plea went to her mother--so swift  
he could not discern it.  
  
The Queen's eyes widened and she turned to him, searching his mind once again, feeling out the  
spell Beryl had cast.  
  
Sryna spoke sadly, "We will enjoy the time we have together.~  
  
He was still confused as she led him away. They swam through the palace as she showed him around  
and spoke more of the customs and traditions of her people. But he could feel her holding  
back...one last sorrow.  
  
She led him to her bedchambers as the magic lights were dimmed, signifying night. He was  
yawning in exhaustion. Using his new tail was tiring...though without the pain, the true  
peace and aid of the ocean was overwhelmingly beautiful. It seemed to caress him to sleep  
even now.  
  
~Where do you sleep?~ He asked her curiously and she smiled, albeit nervously.  
  
~In here.~ She said as they approached a kind of door. It was long tendrils of   
leaves and vines hanging down. They slipped through and he found them in a   
round room with a circular bed of soft looking cloths and sea sponges. She   
watched him yawn and giggled in that silent, mind-touch way he was growing  
accustomed to. Then she drew him down into bed. He tried to read her sorrow  
and she blotted out his attempts by kissing him-with full abandon. The effect  
was quite successful for he was overwhelmed with desire. Without pain and with  
the peace of the sea settling through him, instinct overtook him. He pulled  
her close and kissed her back, trailing his mouth down her neck and letting his  
hands caress her.   
  
She enjoyed it rather a lot. Mermen, he read in her mind, never initiated love-making   
as a rule. He read further and found it was mermaids that cared for their   
spouses. Mermen were the more passive. But Sryna had always been quieter, more  
shy. Her Mother and friends had worried that she was too passive to seek a bond  
with anyone. He smiled. That was why they were perfect for one another.  
  
He kissed her deeply and felt them both floating upwards a bit. He started a   
bit but she assured him this was natural. He felt her own trembling nervousness  
though and tried to sooth her fears.  
  
~I am not afraid love.~ She gasped out in his mind, ~Just anticipating.~  
  
She slipped her tail around his from beneath him then and he carefully   
intertwined his own with hers...and pleasure racked through him so that he cried   
out.  
  
~Sryna...~   
  
And then she pulled his lips back to hers and he really felt it...a soul touch.   
Her very essence reaching through and touching his own as it struggled to meet  
hers. Waves of euphoria flooded his mind so that he feared he might lose it.   
But Sryna was there, in his mind, carefully stroking at his senses to sooth him  
and keep him anchored to her.   
  
And the dance began...  
  
Hours later found them laying in one another's arms. The Queen peered in  
to see Endymion holding her daughter in his arms...the opposite of custom. His   
arms held her protectively and she curled up near his heart, looking soft and  
sweet and cared for. The Queen smiled. Perhaps they were a good match with  
their reversed customs. And a strong male might be a good influence over the  
archaic gender roles of the Kingdom.  
  
She read into the spell Beryl had cast again and shook her head. And even in   
sleep she could feel her daughters' sorrow.   
  
Endymion stirred then and his eyes met hers. He frowned curiously at the sorrow  
he read there.  
  
~What is it? Why are you both so sorrowful?~  
  
The Queen seemed to consider this a moment...then she called up her most ancient   
magic. No doubt Beryl would seek her out for some words for breaking her magic,   
but she would deal with that later. She aimed her silvery magic full force at him   
and felt him stiffen as it filled him, seeking out the black magic bond that  
held him to Beryl.  
  
For a moment he was terrified she would turn him human again.   
  
But then he felt the black magic being broken as one might break chains from  
a prisoner. His tail remained...and another feeling filled him--as though  
he were a well and the bottom dropped out...so much depth had been added.  
  
~What is this feeling?~ He gasped into her mind.  
  
She smiled, ~There is one thing Serenity did not tell you. That is, mermaids   
are immortal.~  
  
His eyes widened. ~Immortal! But I am--~  
  
~You are now.~  
  
His eyes widened further and she laughed. Serenity still lay cradled in his  
arms.   
  
He seemed to contemplate this a moment, then asked, ~But how do you keep  
your population under control? I saw merchildren about.~  
  
She smiled, ~There is a limit to the number of children couples may have, and   
besides that, mermaids evolve into faeries after a certain age. They grow wings  
and leave the sea to live in the forests of the earth. Then they become nymphs  
or return to the source and are reborn. They are mermaids long enough to find  
their bond and possibly birth a child.~  
  
Endymion took this all in. He thought of the woman with wings.  
  
The Queen gazed steadily at him, ~You can never return to your world. And  
when you move to land, you will still remember...but you will not be able to go  
to your people.~  
  
He nodded, ~I understand.~ He met her eyes, ~Thank you...~  
  
The Queen smiled. Serenity will know when she wakes that you are immortal. Her  
joy is worth any price.  
  
Endymion nodded in emphatic agreement.  
  
The Queen left and he pulled his love closer. They were bonded forever in love  
to live an existence of beauty and peace. He felt more blessed than he ever   
recalled feeling and thanked the Creator for his destiny.  
  
Then he fell asleep, content for the first time in his life.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
There it is peeps! lacking in conflict of any kind really, just sap sap sap.   
But I had it on the brain and had to write it. Hope ya liked??? 


End file.
